FAQ: Were Those Resurrected at Christ's Death Raised to Eternal Life (Matthew 27:52-53)?

The Bible records a number of resurrections to human life; I Kings 17:17-24, Luke 7:11-17, and Acts 20:9-10 are examples. The passage in Matthew 27:52-53 is the only record in the Bible of a multiple resurrection: ". . . and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep [died] were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many." Matthew's wording clearly describes these saints as revived to normal, physical life. Like all humans before and after them who were resurrected, they all died again.

Some claim that Hebrews 9:27 says that human beings can only die once: ". . . it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment. . . ." Notwithstanding the several biblical examples of physical resurrection of people and their subsequent deaths, there is another way this verse can be understood: God has determined that all men must die at least once. No human being will live forever, as Paul explains in I Corinthians 15:36, 42 that all men are subject to corruption (decay) and mortality. Even those like Enoch and Elijah who were translated (see Genesis 21-24; II Kings 2:1-11) eventually died and await the resurrection to eternal life in their graves (see Acts 2:29, 34).

The Bereans "received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" (Acts 17:10-11). This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God.

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